________________
Shri Mahavir Jain Aradhana Kendra
www.kobatirth.org
Acharya Shri Kailassagarsuri Gyanmandir
95
income of the then Gujarata. And to say that it shows the number of villages comprising the Gujarata of those medieval times may be considered as an exaggeration at the present state of our knowledge. Perhaps it might be indicative of the p pulation of the genuine land of Gujarat a not consi dering the territories conquered by the Gujarati kings! More probable than even this is to believe it to state the strength of the army of Gujarāta. All the same the same text states later on (7. 10-11) that Jayasimha had encamped near Kantipuri with an army consisting of five hundred thousand sākas and nine hundred thousand padali- ! Of course, this army might have included the divisions of the feudatories also. In these circumstances nothing more definite than these probabilities can be pronounced on the point at this juncture.
Siddharaja Javasimha is described here as the vanquisher of the three kings called Ava pati, Gajapati and Narapati (6. 15 16). It is very difficult to identify these three kings. The term Asvapati' is used in literature to denote the kings of Delt. Likewise, the term 'Gaj-pits" is found employed in the sense of kings of Orissa, a royal dynasty itself being nam d 'Gajapati'. One fails to understand, however, as to the kings of which pk co used to be called Marajah's. One thing is cerlain: The king whose cavalry was more powerful than the other divisions of his army might have been known as Asvapati'. He who possessed a very powerful elephant-torce might have been called 'Gajapati'. In the same way, the king having a mighty force of foot-soldiers might have been denoted by the term 'Nara pati'. The kings of Delhi have been well-renowned for their very powerful cavalry. Similarly, the elephants of Orissa are also famous ↑ The very idea, however, of Siddharaja's relatious, of fight or truce, with the rulers of Delhi and Orissa appears baseless at the present state of our knowledge.
All the same if we go deep into the matter, we do gain sorne light. It is a well-known fact that the power of the Cahama na or Cauhan a rulers of Sakambhari, Ajamera and Naḍdula was solely due to their very strong cavalry. Therefore the term 'Asvapati' can well be applied to a Cahamana ruler. An inscription of the Cahamana king Asaraja of Naḍdula, dated V. S. 1200 (=1144 A.D.) describes him as a Padupadmopajīvin of Mahirājādhrāja Jayasımha. Moreover, he accompanied Siddharaja, with his army, in his great attack on Malava. Therefore there is no doubt that having been subdued by Siddharaja, he had become his
† Dr. B. J. Sandesara, Jagannathapuri ane Orisa (Guj.) p. 299.
For Private And Personal Use Only
